Discoveries
by ObscureEnough
Summary: Xander's chat to Larry during Phases turned out differently, prompting a couple of discoveries. Pre-slash


Disclaimer: Don't own or claim rights to Buffy

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><p>Xander wandered the halls, dazed. Well, he was pretty sure Larry wasn't the werewolf. It seemed that he did have a deep, dark secret, but it wasn't that. He touched his lips absently, and decided that, while kissing Larry was different to kissing Cordelia, it certainly wasn't worse. It seemed the day was full of discoveries.<p>

Only problem was that while he was kissing Larry, all he could think about was Giles. Yet another discovery.

Xander walked into the library, and looked around. There was Giles, standing at the library counter. Xander gulped and quickly moved to sit at the table, Buffy and Willow nowhere to be found.

"How was your chat with Mr Blaisdell?" Giles asked.

Xander started, and looked at the librarian wide-eyed. "Oh, uh … informative. Very informative. But he's not the werewolf, that's for sure."

Giles peered at Xander through his glasses. "Oh? Are you sure?"

Xander nodded. "Yep. He has his own secret, well, _had_ his own secret, but he's not the werewolf." Not a bad kisser, but not the werewolf.

"May I know his secret?" Giles asked, curious as to what had unsettled the young man.

"Um … I think it'll get out soon enough," Xander considered, "but I think it would be better if he told everyone, not me."

"I hardly consider myself 'everyone'," Giles responded archly, "but if you don't feel right about it, by all means keep Mr Blaisdell's secret."

Xander gnawed on his lip for a long moment. "Well, I can't really tell you Larry's secret, but in, uh, talking about it, I came to understand something … similar about myself. I could, er, show you something about that," Xander added, blushing.

Giles blinked, then nodded. "By all means. If that is something you are comfortable with."

Xander looked around the library, then stood. "Not here, though. Just…" Xander shuffled his feet for a moment, then led the way up into the empty stacks. He eventually stopped, and turned to face Giles.

Giles looked around at the section of the library they'd stopped in, trying to figure out what the secret was. "I'm not sure if I can guess your secret," he finally admitted.

Xander looked around at the books, surprised. "Oh, no. That isn't why I brought you up here. It's, um, well…" Xander squared his shoulders, and stepped forward. Taking advantage of Giles' unpreparedness, he cupped his hand around the older man's cheek, and kissed him. It was a brief kiss, and when he pulled away, he saw that Giles was stunned, though not, thankfully, disgusted. "So, uh, can you figure it out?"

Giles cleared his throat, and began to clean his glasses. Once they were cleaned to his satisfaction, he put them back on, and looked at Xander. "I see. Um. So, so is this a, a general thing, or… Well, crushes on teachers, or other, sympathetic adults isn't exactly uncommon," he nodded. "But you must understand that, as a member of the faculty, and, and an adult in a position of authority in your life, I cannot, uh, commence any kind of, um, intimate relationship with you," he explained, blushing.

"But you're not … pissed at me for doing that?" Xander asked hesitantly.

Giles cleared his throat. "You, you are a fine young man, very brave and, and someone who deserves a good relationship. If I were younger – much, much younger – or even if you were somewhat older, then, then it would not be such a scandalous thing to consider. But the fact remains…"

Xander smiled slightly. "Yeah, I get it. But Graduation -"

"Is a year and a half away," Giles finished. "And, and you will have many opportunities to find someone more … appropriate."

Xander gave him a long look. "Giles, this is me we're talking about. What do I know about appropriate relationships?"

Giles smiled then, and chuckled. "Right. Well, none-the-less, it is a long while before anything could happen between us, if ever it did. So, um, let us not talk of this until, well, then." He began to lead the way back to the main level of the library. "But you must promise to talk to me if you need anything, er, information, or such like. I don't want you getting incorrect information, or going out, er, half-cocked," he added, with a sly smile.

Xander blinked, the possibilities of that statement passing through his head. "So, um, you have a lot of information?"

Giles smirked. "The Seventies were a much more … adventurous time in certain respects. How else do you think I met Ethan?"

Xander narrowed his eyes at the older man. "I thought there was something going on between you two," he accused.

"Oh, not recently, certainly," Giles assured him. "But we do have a history." He stopped at the top of the stairs. "I just realised: Larry was the one who, er, encouraged you in your discovery."

"Yep," Xander nodded, popping the 'p'.

Giles looked at the young man thoughtfully. "Well, that is interesting."

Xander grinned. "Yep."


End file.
